What it means to have family
by SuperAwesomePandaKitty
Summary: He'd been walking for a while. A day late despite his promise to come home safe and he wasn't unscathed either so he'd already broken that promise too. - Snapshots of their relationship as Sai tries to make it home to his family, and what happens after. Terrible at summaries but I have to admit I'm kinda proud of this one


A/N: Okay so I have always loved this ship and then I got dragged back into this ship and I needed to get this out there! Sorry if Sai is a little OOC but I did try to write him as a little better with emotion (especially after watched episode 33 of Boruto! Sai is amazing! And Saiino are my life right now.)

P.S. I do not own Naruto/Boruto or any of their characters, I merely wanted to write this story inspired by them (Also any spelling mistakes are my own and I shall edit it every so often, if you would like something added to the end or something then lemme know)

He'd been walking for a while. A day late despite his promise to come home safe and he wasn't unscathed either so he'd already broken that promise too.

Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth, his hand covering a vicious stab wound just below his ribs on his left side and he had a considerable limp from a sprain in his right ankle.

His mission was successful despite all this, it was a solo reconnaissance mission of several rogue ninja trying to disturb the peace between nations and honestly the details mattered little to him as long as he was able to prevent it and keep his family safe.

His family.

If he had been younger, still learning the meaning of various emotions and forming bonds; he might have given up to rest somewhere already and would have probably died from blood loss.

That was before she had saved him in the Land of Silence, delving deep into his mind at great risk to herself to save him from himself and Gengo's genjutsu. She saw something in him and found him worthy of her time, her patience (of which she needed _a lot_ of, he was sure), her love…

His ignorance to emotions and various social norms prompted a lot of awkward moments, he had made her cry one day when he had come back from a mission and asked her why she was there as she had waited for him to come back. He had felt happy, _no_ ; relieved, that she was there don't get him wrong but he didn't know how to express it and she had misinterpreted his question for him not wanting her there.

She successfully avoided him for three days, swapping shifts at the flower shop with her mother and at the hospital with Sakura before he finally found her on top of the Hokage monument hugging her knees as she gazed down at the village below.

He had said nothing, merely relieved that he had finally found her and moved to sit beside her. She didn't speak either as they watched the sunset, hesitantly she slowly laid her head down on his shoulder and breathed out a content sigh when he scooted closer to her.

"Thank you for waiting for me." He murmured with a gentle smile, a _real_ smile and she moved back slightly to gaze up at him in surprise. Her cheeks flared a nice rosy pink and her long blonde hair cascaded around her, covering half of her face and he decided then that that just wouldn't do as he reached up to brush her fringe to the side.

He was happy to finally see both of her eyes, her cheeks darkening considerably and she seemed to be frozen as she waited for something. He smiled again, something warmer before he leaned in and kissed her softly. It was the first kiss he'd initiated, they had been together for a few months but she had always been the one to initiate any physical contact that they shared.

He had always been afraid of doing something wrong because he actually enjoyed her company, prior experience of social interactions with other people like Sakura had always been a disaster despite his close study of his books so he allowed her to take the lead, trusting that she would never take it further than what he was ready for.

After he had kissed her, a small tender thing that betrayed his nerves, she gasped quietly and kissed him back. She pulled back and gave him this happy grin that had tears pooling in the corners of her eyes and for one dreadful moment he thought he'd upset her again but she leaned her head on his shoulder again and pressed closer as his arm went around her.

He smiled despite the pain in his side as he thought back to that day, the day he felt a stirring in his heart stronger than any other he had felt before and of course at the time he had no clue what that warmth was but it was the day he fell in love with her.

His mission had been going well, he got all the information he needed and was just about to leave but these shinobi were powerful and one of them had sensed his ink creature from all the way in the ground.

He found himself outnumbered and surrounded fast, he no longer went numb ' _there is only the mission_ ' but he did narrow his eyes and fight with everything he had. He had a promise to keep and he conjured ink creature after ink creature, some for attack/defence, others for distraction.

He managed to escape on his owl, chakra running dangerously low but he controlled it to fly as fast as it could. One of the ninja could not be outran though, she flew after him with wings made of chakra, the other's didn't follow as they obviously thought she was powerful enough to take him down on her own.

She seemed like the type, she laughed and was overconfident in her abilities, he kept his owl low just in case she managed to destroy it and he wouldn't have to fall from too high a distance.

"You're good, your art style is too but I'm afraid this is the end for you." She grinned as she flew at him and he summoned Fujin and Raijin as they leapt out of his scroll together and punched her but she disappeared in a cloud of smoke. "Too late." She grinned behind his ear, he turned trying to grab his sword in time but his breath hitched as she dug a kunai into his side just as Fujin and Raijin turned to punch the real version out of the sky.

She'd managed to destroy his owl before she was thrown and he fell, landing awkwardly on his side as a puddle of ink surrounded him, thankfully not injuring himself further except for causing the pain to flare up.

He used whatever chakra he had left to write a message to Kakashi-Sama, he wrote as much information as he could as he summoned the bird to fly as quickly as it could to Konoha and complete his mission for him.

He knew he had to get out of the area then so he used the adrenaline flowing through his veins to hold his side and run. He only stopped when he was sure he was far enough away from his fall and he collapsed against a tree to catch his breath.

He still had some food pills in his pouch so he took the chance to eat something to get some sort of energy back for the journey home and he breathed a sigh of relief when he felt his bird disintegrate onto Kakashi's scroll.

He thought of his family then, pushing himself up and summoning an ink eagle to fly him home, it only flew him as far as his chakra would last and disappeared about a day's journey from the village. He landed hard on the ground, spraining his ankle as he fell and put pressure on his wound and he let out a shout as it was excruciating.

With the added limp he pushed himself to walk to the village, he had _promised_ and he knew she would worry when he didn't make it home that night.

He sighed softly, he was so close to home now but he could feel his energy slipping and he slumped against a tree for a few minutes to catch his breath.

He could feel regret pouring out of his heart as he thought back to their almost fight on the night he'd left for his mission. She was holding their three month old son in her arms when he came back from the Hokage's office as it was a last minute mission he had been assigned.

"What do you mean a solo mission?" She asked worriedly, glancing down to their son to make sure she hadn't woken him before looking back at his face.

"Kakashi-Sama said they urgently needed information on a rogue group of ninja, as I'm the most suited for the job he asked me to go." He replied matter-of-factly and she rolled her eyes irritably.

"I understand that but why did he ask you to go _alone_?" She stressed and he merely tilted his head in confusion, did she not trust him to complete his mission?

"He didn't, he said I could take someone with me if I wanted but I declined." He told her and she froze, face forming into a frown as she glared at him.

"Are you serious?!" She hissed, voice barely contained as she tried not to wake their baby and she shook her head angrily. "Sai, I can't believe you would do that."

"It's not surprising, I work better alone on reconnaissance missions." He replied, he was so confused as to why she was upset with him as even after they got married and he went on solo missions, she worried about him but she never fought with him about it before.

"That's not the point." She said bitterly, she looked down at their son again as she held him a little tighter.

"You've never had a problem before, I _don't understand_ Ino." He told her, he felt a little sad that he was upsetting her but he genuinely didn't know what the problem was.

"How can you not understand why it didn't bother me before?" She asked as she pointedly looked at their son, he could pick up the hurt in her tone and his face fell as his heart twisted uncomfortably in his chest. She breathed out a sigh and shook her head as she bit her lip. "You know what? I don't want our last conversation to be a fight."

"Wait, what?" He asked urgently, moving closer to her worriedly as his heart skipped painfully. "Are you saying that you're leaving me?"

"What? No Sai." She replied quickly, her lips quirked in a ghost of a smile and she allowed him to put his arms around her. "I just…I don't….If you get hurt on the mission I want you to know that I love you, Inojin loves you; he might not be able to say it right now but he does."

He pulled back to look at her in surprise as a genuine smile formed on his face. "I love you both too." She smiled brightly at that before her smiled dimmed a little.

"Okay then, so you have to make a promise." She said and he gave her a confused look but he was curious as he scooted closer to her. "You have to promise me and Inojin right now that you will come home safe, that no matter what you will always come home."

He looked at her in surprise, their son took that moment then to stir and his little eyes so much like his mother's stared up at him as if he was waiting for his answer. He wanted to tell her that he couldn't make that promise; that things can happen but the way she looked at him with her eyes filled with love and a little sadness and so so beautiful; he couldn't refuse.

"I promise I'll come home to both of you." He told them, Inojin's little hands reached out to touch his face and he gave his father a gummy smile as he kissed the tiny hand that brushed over his lips.

He sighed as he pictured her face, so full of worry and affection. He cursed himself for his lack of understanding then, it didn't bother her before because they didn't have a son then…Their family was more than just the two of them now and his son needed _both_ of his parents.

He understood now.

Thinking of his promise again and the gummy smile of his son who was always happy to see him, who didn't judge him and didn't look at him to see someone socially challenged; he pushed himself forward.

There was only another mile or two more and he would be at the village gates, he could do this; he _promised_.

He was so tired, every step felt like it drained him but he didn't care as the thought of his family pushed him onward and he knew he had to keep going. He rounded the corner, he could see the gates now and he sighed softly when he saw that the chair Izumo always set out for her was vacant.

Naruto and Konohamaru were talking animatedly at the gates, no doubt Ino had been sent home and she only left when they promised to wait for him. His wife could be stubborn but at least she wasn't out this late at night and would hopefully be at home resting with their son.

It was Konohamaru that noticed him first. "Naruto-Nii-Chan!" He shouted as he pointed at him.

"Sai!" Naruto called out as the pair ran towards him.

His relief was like a physical thing, thrumming through his veins as he realised he'd managed to keep his promise but it took so much energy that he'd collapsed and he let out a pained grunt at the impact. He tried to push himself back up but he didn't have any strength left, he felt warm hands picking him up as Naruto pulled his left arm over his shoulder and Sai kept his right hand on his wound.

"Naruto-Nii-Chan, we need to get him to the hospital-kore." Konohamaru said urgently as Sai tried to keep up with his friend's panicked steps.

"Sai, what the hell happened to you?" Naruto exclaimed as he tried to guide him forward, it wasn't easy with his obvious limp but he managed with the extra help.

"Ino and Inojin." Sai murmured breathlessly, black spots were dancing across his eyes and he found it incredibly hard to keep himself focused.

"They're fine, Sakura took them home an hour ago-ttebayo." His friend replied quickly as they headed through the gates.

"Want me to go get them?" Konohamaru asked worriedly and Naruto nodded wordlessly.

"Try…Try not to scare them." Sai said softly, his legs gave out then and Naruto easily picked him up.

"I'll try-kore." The younger ninja replied as he ran off in the direction of the Yamanaka house.

"Sai, you have to stay awake." Naruto told him urgently as he ran, Sai hadn't even realised that he'd closed his eyes and he blinked them open blearily. "Why didn't you let Kakashi-Sensei know you were hurt in your message, don't you know how worried we've all been-ttebayo?!"

"I…I didn't have much…chakra left. I wanted…to finish the mission…even if…" He trailed off when Naruto glared at him furiously.

"You should have told us, we would have come to get you." His friend said bitterly and Sai smiled softly at his concern. "Do you have any idea how worried Ino has been? She was waiting for you all night dattebayo."

"I'm sorry, I tried…to fly home but I…ran out of chakra and fell. I walked…most of the night…I promised." He murmured sleepily, eyes rolling in the back of his head as the darkness threatened to take over and Naruto jostled him urgently.

"Sai, we're almost there. Stay awake!" He heard just before he slipped into blissful unconsciousness.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ino sighed sadly as she stroked her baby's cheek, he was resting on her chest as she lay back on the couch and she tried to hold back her emotions.

"Here Ino-pig, I brought you some tea." Sakura murmured as she set their cups down on the table. "I'll set Inojin into his crib." She offered as she held out her hands for the baby and Ino reluctantly handed him over.

"Thanks forehead." She mumbled hoarsely when her friend came back and sat beside her on the couch.

"Don't worry about it." She replied softly, taking a sip of her tea as she watched her friend worriedly and let out a sigh. "He probably got lost or something." Sakura offered gently and Ino laughed humourlessly.

"Wow that's weak, even for you forehead." She said with a sad smile, finger tracing the lip of her mug as she stared at the contents as if they would have all the answers.

"Hey." Sakura said sternly. "Sai will be fine, he knows what he's doing and he sent a bird messenger yesterday so there could be another reason why he's not back yet."

"You know as well as I do that he'd try and finish his mission no matter what, what if…what if he only sent it because he knew he was going to…" She couldn't even finish the sentence as she could feel the tears pooling in her eyes and Sakura immediately put her arm around her as she held her closely.

"Look, Kakashi-Sensei said that if he doesn't return by tomorrow we're going to go out and find him." Her friend said gently.

"I can't bring up Inojin on my own." Ino cried softly as the dam broke and Sakura hushed her as she hugged her tighter.

"You won't have to. Come on, have faith in him. Sai's not the same guy he was when we first met; sure he's still annoyingly ignorant when it comes to certain things but he's learned what it means to have a family…because of you." Sakura told her tenderly.

Ino said nothing, she sniffed quietly as she tried to control her emotions and was content to stay in her friend's hold. She was glad that she didn't fight with him before he left, she was so unbelievably grateful that she'd told him she loved him and she looked down at her hands in her lap.

Over the years they had been together, Sai had tried to understand emotions better and she knew he had only come so far _for her_ not because of her. One of the many things she'd admired about him was his honesty, sure he could be blunt and even hurtful without meaning to be but she had asked him to be completely honest with her and so he was.

He promised her he would come home, she knew he had meant it even if his logic had wanted to argue against making such a promise. She smiled sadly as she remembered the day she gave birth to their son, Sai at first had a neutral expression on his face as he was so filled with mixed emotions that he wasn't sure which one to express first.

A tear streaked down his cheek when he saw their son's face, he was unaware of it but Ino smiled softly at him as she beckoned him to come closer and hold his child. Once Sai had their son in his arms his face melted into one of pure shock and happiness, tears streaming down his face openly and he looked up at Ino with such love in his eyes.

It was the first time she had seen so many emotions on his face at once, he was definitely overwhelmed by it all but she pulled him to sit beside her on the bed and he leaned back as he watched their son in awe as his little fist squeezed his thumb.

"He has a surprisingly strong grip." Sai murmured curiously, Ino laughed breathily and leaned into his side exhausted as she peered down at their child. "I don't think I've ever _felt_ this much before." He added quietly, moving over to kiss the top of her head as she leaned more heavily into him lethargically.

"I feel it too." Ino replied and she did, she had never felt such an overwhelming amount of love for anything before and she smiled as she noticed their baby's eyes closing sleepily.

A frantic knock at the door brought her out of her thoughts and she pulled out of Sakura's arms hastily as they shared a worried look.

"I got it." Sakura said as she quickly stood up to answer the door, Ino couldn't resist as she followed her friend anxiously and the kunoichi opened the door. "What is it Konohamaru-kun?"

"It's…" The young ninja panted, he must have ran this whole way and Ino held her breath as she waited for him to finish. "It's Sai, he's here. Naruto-Nii-Chan is taking him to the hospital now-kore."

"What? Why? Is he hurt badly?" Ino asked frantically and Konohamaru looked at her like a deer in headlights as he realised she was there.

"He didn't want you to worry, but you should probably come to the hospital now."He replied, averting his eyes and Ino noticed that he hadn't answered her question but she let it go.

She hurried into their bedroom to lift Inojin out of his crib, strapping him to her chest so she could hold him close and Sakura motioned to the diaper bag in her hand.

"Maybe we should ask Hinata if she could mind Inojin." Her friend said tentatively but Ino shook her head adamantly.

"Hinata has her hands full with Boruto and Sarada, I'm not going to make her look after three babies by herself." She replied irritably as she quickly reached for her jacket.

"But-." Sakura started but Ino cut her off.

"No, I'm keeping him with me. If…If something happens, I'll need to have him there so I don't fall apart." Ino told her friend sadly before shaking her head to clear it and they hurried out after Konohamaru together.

"Look it might not be that bad, and even if it is…you know I'll do everything I can." Sakura said gently and Ino nodded, she trusted her best friend to do everything in her power to save him.

They got to the hospital within five minutes and hurried through the halls. Ino gasped when she saw Naruto standing there, blood was on his clothes and hands and she just knew that it was Sai's. Sakura immediately pulled her into her arms, turning her head away from the future Hokage and she tried to breathe slowly so she wouldn't panic her baby.

"Naruto, where is he?" Sakura asked her teammate.

"The nurses took him, they said they'll let us see him soon-ttebayo." He answered worriedly.

"Fine, take off your jacket and go wash your hands." She told him sternly and he hurried off to the bathroom, Konohamaru following behind. When they were gone Sakura immediately pulled back and placed her hands on Ino's cheeks gently. "Hey, it's gonna be okay. I need you to stay here so I can go check on him, can you do that?"

"Sakura, I…" She started but Sakura interrupted her in a soft voice.

"Ino, I need you to _stay here_. Once I find out what's going on, I will come right back for you okay?" Her friend said and Ino nodded sadly as she stroked her baby's back. Sakura left with a nod after easing her into a chair in the waiting area, Ino sniffed softly as she wiped the tears roughly off her face and she tried to take deep breaths.

Inojin slept on, blissfully unaware and she envied the innocence young children had as reality could be hard to deal with. He had kept his promise somewhat she guessed, he had come home but she just wished she could see him and see one of his real smiles; the smiles he only had for her and more recently, their son.

She tried to distract herself but all she could think about was Sai and the memories they shared together, she still remembered the look on his face when they got engaged. It was the night of Shikamaru and Temari's wedding, the couple got married in Suna so her brothers could be there but they would be moving to Konoha a few days later and their guests stayed at an inn.

Ino had made Sai dance with her, he wasn't perfect but he wasn't bad either as he had studied several books on how to dance and she remembered the smile he had on his face when he realised he was having fun.

Sai was quiet when they had got back to their room that night, Ino was removing her make-up and letting her hair down when she noticed the contemplative silence he was exuding and she felt a little worried so she decided to try and talk to diffuse it.

"I'm so happy for them." She started. "Shikamaru's always been a lazy ass about these kinds of things but Temari is really good for him and they looked so happy together."

"Hm." Sai hummed his agreement, he was fidgeting and Ino knew that was never a good sign as it meant he really wanted to talk about something but knew that he shouldn't.

"Sai? What is it?" Ino asked him with a concerned frown.

"Oh…um…so Temari will be Nara Temari now right?" He asked nonchalantly, fake smile on his face and she narrowed her eyes at that.

"Well yeah." She agreed softly and he nodded mindlessly.

"I'm sorry Ino." Sai murmured and her eyes widened worriedly as he seemed to be closing in on himself. "I don't think we can get married." He added matter-of-factly but she could sense the hurt in his tone even if no one else would notice and she tried to reign in the hurt she felt at the statement.

"You don't want to?" Ino asked hesitantly and he shook his head quickly.

"It's not that I don't want to, I just can't." He replied with a helpless shrug.

"Why not?" She prompted, knowing she would have to probe in order to get the answers she needed from him as he found it hard to articulate how he was feeling.

"I don't have a last name to give. I read in a book somewhere that in marriage, the wife takes the husband's surname and I don't have one. Sai isn't even my real name, it was a codename given to me when I joined Team Seven…I don't remember my original name." He explained frankly, same silly fake smile on his face as if he wasn't hurting but she had learned to read every one of his smiles, fake or not.

"Sai." Ino said sternly and he looked up in surprise as she turned to face him properly. "Do you want to choose a different name? Do you like to be called Sai?" She asked and he frowned as he thought about it.

"Sai is the name I was given by Danzo-Sama but it's the name my friends use when they talk to me, it's the name I've had since I've tried to regain my emotions and it makes me happy when people use it…So I think I like Sai." He replied contemplatively.

"Good, do you want to marry me?" Ino said with a soft smile on her face, she noticed the sad look on his face for just a moment before he turned his expression neutral and looked down at his hands.

"I can't-." He started but she cut him off.

"Forget about that for a moment, do you _want_ to?" She insisted and he met her eyes again before he nodded softly, Ino could feel her cheeks heating up as she tried to keep herself from grinning and shouting with glee. "Did your books happen to mention that not all women take their husband's surname?"

Sai paused for a moment. "I'm not sure, there wasn't that much information on that part to be honest just that the wife either takes their husband's second name as their own or adds it onto their own surname."

"Did you ever see anything in your books about husbands taking their wife's name?" Ino asked softly and he breathed in quickly but it was so gentle that she wouldn't have been able to hear it had she not been so close.

"I didn't but is that something that can happen?" He asked quietly and she smiled fondly.

"It's not very common but it happens sometimes." Ino murmured as she leaned a little closer and he looked back at her with wide eyes.

"I…I see." Sai mumbled as his own pale cheeks began to heat and she smiled affectionately as she liked that she could have that kind of effect on him.

"Would you like to be Yamanaka Sai?" She asked gently as she tried to contain her excitement.

"Yamanaka Sai?" Sai whispered as if testing the words out and she could see the mixed emotions burning in his eyes as his face struggled to express all of them. "You wish to marry me?" He asked in surprise and she shook her head with a tut, what was she going to do with this human disaster that she loved so much?

"Of course I do, we've been together for two years Sai. I love you and as long as _you_ want to marry me too, of course I would." She told him tenderly and he looked down as his cheeks brightened, his real smile threatening to turn into a grin. She let out a gasp of surprise as Sai's pulled her to him quickly, his lips found hers easily and they kissed languidly despite their excitement.

"Thank you, Ino. I really do love you." He murmured into her lips, her face was aflame and she smiled happily as tears gathered in her eyes. Sai was many things, he could be awkward and shy, he could be blunt and rude but her favourite part was his loving honesty and she let out a contented sigh when he held her especially close that night in bed.

"Ino, you can see him now." Sakura placed her hand on her shoulder and shook her out of her thoughts, her friend wiped the tear from her cheek as she hadn't even realised she'd been crying.

"Really?" She asked, standing quickly as she hugged her child closely and looked at her friend desperately.

"Yeah, it looks bad but he'll make it." Sakura warned her. "He's in an induced coma to deal with the chakra exhaustion and blood loss but he's going to make it." She explained with a warm smile and Ino almost sagged to the floor in relief as she smiled tearfully.

Sakura grabbed her hand and guided her with her to Sai's room, there was a cloth covering his eyes with a medical seal on it to keep him asleep and a tube sticking out of his mouth. There were bandages covering his side and ankle and there was a needle sticking out of his left arm which was attached to a bottle of blood.

She couldn't stop the tears from falling as he looked so still but the sound of his breathing and the beeping of the heart monitor proved he was still alive. Sakura placed a hand on her back and gently pushed her towards her husband, she lightly covered his right hand with her own and she sighed in relief as his skin was warm to the touch.

"They said they'll take him out of the coma tomorrow, they just wanted to make sure that the blood transfusion went through successfully and to help rebuild his chakra which will help him heal faster." Sakura told her quietly, two nurses came in with a recliner chair for Ino to rest in beside him and they smiled softly at her before they left them alone. "I'll just be outside to give you a moment alone, call me if you need me." She murmured and walked out when Ino gave an affirmative nod but she couldn't take her eyes off him.

"I'm so glad you're home." She whispered to him, she knew she wouldn't receive a reply but it comforted her to speak to him and she clutched his hand tighter with both of hers. "You really scared me you know? And neither of us are getting any younger so maybe next time don't be so stubborn and take someone with you for back-up." Ino added with a weak chuckle, her tears streamed down her cheeks and one landed on his arm; his hand twitched in hers.

Ino gasped quietly as his hand instinctively squeezed hers, as if he was trying to comfort her when he couldn't speak and she smiled in relief as she eased herself down on the chair beside his bed but she never let go of his hand.

Sakura came in a few minutes later, she sat on the arm of the chair and didn't speak as she wanted to just be there for her friend.

"Naruto said he's going to go home and check on Hinata but he'll be right back, Shikamaru and Choji are already out there. News travels fast." Sakura murmured after a few moments of silence and Ino smiled in thanks.

"He's going to make it." Ino said and her friend nodded softly.

"Of course he is, Sai isn't one to give up easily. He can be just as stubborn as his wife." She joked and Ino rolled her eyes fondly.

"Shut up forehead." She retorted quietly with a small laugh. "Choji shouldn't be here, Karui could pop any minute." Ino murmured worriedly.

"Choji says he has his phone and Karui didn't mind." Sakura offered. "Temari's looking after Shikadai so Shikamaru wanted to be here for you too."

"Could you send them in?" She asked and Sakura nodded as she quickly walked off to get her best friends. Ino stared at her husband with a relieved look, he would be awake tomorrow. She could wait one more day.

"Hi Ino." Choji said hesitantly when he walked in, she turned her head to look at her teammates but it was hard to take her eyes off of Sai and she couldn't help but notice their shocked expressions when they saw him.

"Hey Choji, you should be at home with Karui." She told him gently and he shook his head adamantly, Shikamaru looked her over worriedly before he moved over to place his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, we came as soon as we heard. Sakura says he'll be okay though right?" Shikamaru said and she nodded with a relieved smile.

"Yeah, it only looks bad because of all the equipment. He's currently in an induced coma as they're giving him a blood transfusion and trying to rebuild his chakra." She informed them and the two men nodded as their faces melted with relief.

"We're here for you Ino." Choji told her with a kind smile and she laughed softly.

"Thanks guys." She replied as she subtly wiped the tears from her eyes with her free hand.

"What are friends for?" Shikamaru offered with a nonchalant shrug but she knew he cared about his teammates almost as much as he did for his family as they basically were family.

It was that moment that Inojin decided to announce his presence as he began to cry, Ino quickly looked around for her diaper bag but she realised she'd left it in the waiting room and she panicked as she was torn between going to get it and having to leave her husband's side.

"What do you need?" Shikamaru asked instantly as Inojin's cries got louder but Sakura was already rushing in with the bag.

"Hai hai." Her friend cooed as she quickly handed it over to Ino. "Is he hungry? Or does he need a diaper change because I can do that."

"I think both." Ino said. "I can go change him just…stay with him for a bit?" She asked her teammates and they nodded as she lifted the bag and took her crying child to the bathroom. After changing his diaper she quickly hurried back to the room as he was a little calmer but she knew he was hungry. "Thanks for waiting with him, I'm going to need to feed Inojin so could you step out for a bit?" She asked her friends and they nodded as they understood what she needed to do.

"You need anything, call us. We'll be in the waiting room." Shikamaru told her and she nodded with a smile of thanks as she settled back on the recliner. Sakura had closed the door behind them so she could feed her baby in private as she was still breastfeeding and his little whines stopped once he latched on.

"All that crying and for what?" She cooed at her child as he looked up at her and drank greedily. She watched her son's eyes drooping the more he drank and when he'd had enough she pulled the towel out of her bag and began to burp him with gentle pats on his back. "Good job sweetheart." She praised when she heard the little burp and she eased him back down into her arms as she rocked him to sleep.

When she was satisfied that Inojin was settled and asleep, her eyes strayed to her husband's sleeping form and she watched his quiet inhales and exhales. She was beginning to feel her exhaustion creeping up on her as she had barely slept since he didn't make it home.

Ino had waited on the little seat Izumo always left out for her every time Sai was due back from a mission. It was getting darker and darker, she ignored the pitying looks she had received from the various villagers and shinobi as they passed. She had wrapped Inojin up snugly so he wouldn't feel the cold but the later the hour got the colder it became but she couldn't bring herself to go home.

"Ino-Chan?" Hinata's soft voice called from beside her, Naruto stood behind her as he held Boruto with a worried look and Ino's lip wobbled as she knew she would have to admit defeat. "It's getting really late, would you like to stay with us?" She asked kindly. "I'm sure Boruto would like to see his favourite aunt and uncle's child."

Ino laughed weakly at that. "I'm sure Inojin would like that." She replied sadly.

"Come on, you can stay with us tonight. I'm sure he'll be home soon but it's too cold to be out here at this hour." Hinata said with a gentle smile, she was a shy woman but there was a strength to her words like she wouldn't take no for an answer and Ino sighed in defeat and allowed herself to be helped up.

"Thank you Hinata, Naruto." Ino murmured after they entered the Uzumaki home, it was nice and warm and Hinata immediately began to make tea for them as Naruto went off to set Boruto in his crib.

"You're welcome Ino-Chan." Hinata replied softly. "Inojin can sleep in with Boruto tonight, the crib is big enough for a small army of babies." She joked lightly and Ino smiled gratefully as she took off some of the layers she had put on him so he wouldn't overheat before settling him down beside Boruto.

She walked back into the kitchen and had sat down at the table opposite Hinata, Naruto walked over and took the seat beside his wife as Ino warmed her hands on her mug.

"I know that if you wanted to, you would wait out there all night." Hinata started hesitantly and Ino looked at her warily. "But there's a chance he's camped out somewhere for the night and that's why he hasn't come back yet and I didn't want you to wait out in the cold." Naruto nodded in agreement with a concerned look.

"Thank you. I know something probably came up and he wouldn't want me to be out there this late at night, especially with our son but I…I just kept expecting him to walk around the corner and what if I wasn't there? You know?" Ino explained sadly and Hinata nodded in sympathy as she reached over to squeeze her hand.

"Ino-Chan, you've done the same for me when Naruto-Kun was late back from his missions and you'll never know how grateful I am to you for that. I know how hard it is to walk away when they could come home at any moment but you know you have to take care of yourself and Inojin first. He won't want to come home and find out that you caught a cold by waiting all night." She replied gently and Ino smiled gratefully at her friend.

"Besides I've already sent a shadow clone out there to wait in your place dattebayo, Hinata asked me to head out there after you're both in bed." Naruto told her softly and Ino looked to him in surprise.

"Really?" She asked with a relieved tone. "I'm sorry you had to go through all this trouble but I don't even know how to begin to thank you."

"You don't have to-ttebayo, you're both our friends so we want to wait for him too." He replied with a smile and Hinata nodded beside him.

"So now all you have to do is get some rest and we'll see what happens tomorrow. Naruto-Kun will wake us if Sai comes back during the night." Hinata informed her, Ino nodded gratefully as she finally took a sip of her tea, smiling softly when she realised it was chamomile tea as no doubt Hinata had wanted to help calm her.

Hinata showed her to the spare room after their tea. "Don't worry about Inojin, if he wakes up I'll see to him okay? I just want you to get some sleep." She told her gently and Ino nodded her thanks before she crawled into bed. "Goodnight Ino-Chan, I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Hinata, thank you and thank Naruto for me." Ino replied and Hinata smiled softly before she closed the door with a quiet click. That night Ino tossed and turned, she couldn't get comfortable in the strange bed and her mind raged with 'what ifs'.

Ino stirred when she felt someone lifting Inojin from her arms. "It's only me." Sakura murmured softly. "You should get some sleep, I'm going to take Inojin out into the waiting area with me; we won't be too far so don't worry." She added before Ino could argue and she nodded tiredly. Ino leaned back in the recliner, realising belatedly that a blanket had been placed on her as she smiled gratefully at Sakura's retreating form and she turned the chair around so she could still hold Sai's hand while she slept.

"I'll see you tomorrow Sai." She told him softly, placing a kiss to the back of his unresponsive hand before she leaned back again and closed her eyes.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Shin was the only family he had ever known, back when he was innocent and pure. When he was very good at expressing emotion, he could be shy and liked to express himself through art. He was so happy when his Nii-San got him the sketchbook and he decided that he would draw about their adventures together.

Danzo was the only father-figure he had known and before he held his own son in his arms, he still referred to the man as Danzo-Sama no matter how badly that man treated him and his brother. He knew that at some point he was going to be forced to hurt Shin but he couldn't bring himself to do it so it was heartbreaking when Shin tried to kill him…

No, his Nii-San didn't try to kill him…He tried to goad Sai into killing Shin because he was dying and had hid it from everyone…because he wanted Sai to survive.

' _Kill your emotions_ ' his Nii-San said and so he did. He buried any trace of emotion he had left, and with every mission where he was forced to kill someone…It got easier to forget who he was, he didn't have a name, he didn't have a family, _there is only the mission_.

The only thing Sai hadn't managed to kill was his yearning need to draw, his jutsu depended on it but sometimes he would open up a sketchbook and draw a swirling mass of colours and look at it objectively. Why would he want to do that? What did it mean? The sketchbooks were only given to him to 'practice' his jutsu but there was a small part of him that rebelled against everything and that was expressed through his art.

When he was assigned to Team Seven as Uchiha Sasuke's replacement, he was assigned the name 'Sai' and just so happened to be on a team with one of the most emotional people he had ever met. They did not like the fact that he had no emotions, he found that he did not like the way they chased after the 'traitor' and treated Sai as some sort of outsider.

When Sakura punched him after his comments, Sai had a moment…however brief but it was a moment where he felt _something_. Possibly regret or wonder as they were passionate people that wanted to save their precious friend and he immediately had to draw the feeling.

He began to notice things, notice how some in the village would look at Naruto with suspicion and fear, maybe even hatred but Naruto had a genuine smile on his face and didn't let it bother him. He never gave up even if it would be so easy and he never turned anything into hatred.

After he saved the village, Sai watched as Naruto asked two Cloud ninja to take their anger and hatred for Sasuke out on him. He couldn't tear his eyes away as the red haired woman kept punching and punching, something that Naruto clearly did not deserve and something twisted horribly in his chest.

So once Naruto stood up and she came back at him again, Sai could no longer observe as he moved forward to block the fist from reaching his…friend. Naruto was his friend and he could no longer standby and allow his friend to be hurt.

When Kakashi-Sensei found him later and told him 'good job', there was some sort of excited warmth in his chest and for possibly the first time his lips went up of their own accord and he smiled happily as he felt he had done something right.

When Sasuke killed Danzo, a part of him couldn't shake the respect he had for the man but he was free to do as he wanted. He realised then that he wanted to be _more_ than what he was forced into being, he wanted to form bonds and make an effort to make friends. He went to the library to study emotions and social norms, testing out these theories that he'd learned had led to many spectacular fails…especially where Sakura was concerned which earned him quite a few punches to the face and each time he would go back to his books wondering where he went wrong.

He'd thought that calling a girl the opposite of what she was would make them happy…so when he called Sakura ugly he couldn't understand just why she was so angry and he endeavoured not to do it again. Some time after his failed experiment, Team Seven went to share a meal with Team Ten…minus Shikamaru and it was then that he met _her_ properly for the first time.

Ino sat beside him, she seemed to be in a good mood by their proximity although he couldn't figure out why but maybe she liked BBQ just as much as Choji and he decided to try his nicknames out again to further his bonds with more than just Naruto, Sakura, Yamato-Taicho and Kakashi-Sensei.

He froze when Naruto covered his mouth as he had almost called Choji 'fatso' and so he decided against that course of action lest he suffer the same fate as he would when Sakura was angry. Ino then introduced herself cheerfully and he thought long and hard about what name he should call her, calling her the opposite of what she was like Sakura wouldn't go well so he tried a different course of action as he decided to call her something she would want to hear.

"Hello Miss Beautiful." He had said, she looked surprised and her cheeks heated to a rosy pink, and he worried for a moment that she was having some sort of episode but he didn't have much of a chance to think about it as Sakura got really angry and almost destroyed the place to hit him…He did manage to catch a glimpse of her smile beforehand so maybe his efforts with nicknames were not lost despite Sakura's outburst.

He didn't really think about her all that much as war took priority, ' _there is only the mission_ ' didn't really apply to him anymore because he had comrades and friends to care about and there was a heavy pang in his heart when he came face to face with his Nii-San.

Sai had never felt such tenacious anger before at the thought of Shin being used like this, how dare they turn him into a bomb and make him fight like a puppet on strings?! His heart broke at seeing him 'die' again but when he reformed and told them to run he was determined not to let it happen again.

He hadn't realised his sketchbook had fallen to the ground, hadn't noticed Shin looking down at the final picture of them holding hands with smiles on their faces and when his Nii-San looked back at him with a peaceful smile after seeing his finished picture; he faded away…finally at peace. Sai had cried then for the first time since Shin had died that day when Danzo forced them to kill each other, such overwhelming emotion that he couldn't even describe back then but now he knew it was grief although he was happy too.

After the war, he threw himself into his art, his studies and missions. There wasn't much to do during peacetime but there were still those dark shadows that threatened to undo the fragile but hard-earned peace between nations and Sai knew he wanted to do his part to save it.

He got better at expressing emotion, at identifying all these thoughts and feelings he had but he was nowhere near perfect or at the same level as everyone else. He didn't realise that the dull fragile pain in his heart was his loneliness, he smiled to everyone he saw and envied the easy camaraderie others had…He enjoyed the company of Naruto and Sakura, he knew they liked him but there would always be a distance with others as they weren't sure how to deal with his bluntness or misunderstood what he was trying to convey.

When they rescued Hanabi and Hinata from Toneri, at nineteen Sai was better and he felt anger and concern when they saw that Hanabi had her eyes removed. She was just a child and didn't deserve to be hurt like this, it made him feel protective of her so after they got back from the moon he made sure to check on her the next day and she smiled gratefully to him.

Shortly after he was sent on a reconnaissance mission in the Land of Silence, he was only supposed to observe but every day he found his sense of self blurring as he watched Gengo give his speeches to his followers. He found himself sympathising with the cause but he knew it was a bad sign, he knew that his loyalty to Konoha was wavering, his sense of self reconstructing to a follower and he sent a letter to Kakashi-Sama via one of his birds to explain the situation and how he didn't even know himself anymore. He felt himself crying as he wrote, forcing every letter out of him and soon after he had been discovered.

He didn't remember much after that, only that his body was moving without his knowledge and he was buried under an inky blankness, protected by two of his lions and he felt like they were the only friends he ever had.

He couldn't help but cry, feeling lost and alone as his body moved without his control. There was a low buzzing sound, sounding like Shikamaru but from really far away and he could barely hear it. It felt like he was back in root, mindless and unfeeling; it scared him as he'd worked so hard for so long to regain his emotions and make friends but it seemed like a distant dream.

But then _she_ came for him, he didn't recognise her at first as the mindless control was hard to break and she told him she was his friend. He had thought that that couldn't be right, the only friends he had were the lions and he told her as much but she told him that he was made to think that way by Gengo.

He felt scared then, not sure what to believe; sure it was another trick and so he told her not to come any closer but she wouldn't stop. The illusion was crumbling, his lions disappeared and he was left there alone…No, that's wrong; he wasn't alone and he couldn't stop the tears from flowing as his heart tugged painfully.

She smiled softly and walked towards him, he was frozen, couldn't move even if he wanted to and she put her arms around him. It was probably the first time in years that he had been hugged so closely, if ever and he didn't know what to do.

"Let's go back together, Sai." She murmured. "Everyone's waiting for you." His heart skipped as he realised that all his hard work into reforming himself hadn't been for nothing, his friends cared about him, it wasn't some illusion in his head nor was it one-sided friendships and he couldn't help but feel shocked before it felt like he was being snapped back into place like a jigsaw puzzle.

He opened his eyes groggily when he heard her calling for him, he had felt confused for a moment but she smiled when he said her name and although he felt a stirring warmth at seeing her, his mind immediately remembered the mission and everything that had happened. He needed to warn Shikamaru before he too fell under the genjutsu.

When everything had been finished, Gengo arrested and everyone was getting ready to leave Sai couldn't stop thinking about Ino. How her kindness really reached through to him, he had misjudged her as he at first thought that she had only saved him as part of her mission but he could feel that she genuinely _cared_ about him. Like he was someone worth saving.

So he decided he wanted to thank her in some way, he gave her a genuine smile as he did so and even called her Miss Beautiful again as he remembered that it made her happy. She said he could thank her with a date…He had agreed but he felt a kind of upset in his stomach and he would need to get Naruto to give his dating books back.

Sai felt like he was floating while his mind went through different snapshots of his memories but he could hear his wife whispering to him softly, telling him about what he had missed whilst he'd been away and how worried she had been when he hadn't come home. That everything would be okay now, he so badly wanted to talk to her; to answer her when she said she loved him and couldn't wait until he was awake.

' _I'm trying to wake up._ ' He thought to her, he really was but something was blocking him. ' _I promised._ ' It felt a little frustrating to be aware of various voices talking to him but not being able to talk back, his wife and son needed him so why couldn't he fight through this?

Some period of time later, it was impossible to keep track of time in this state he felt something change and instead of the wall blocking him this time, it felt like an ocean of water he had to swim through to get to the other end and he floated through this dreamscape absently before awareness came to him slowly.

It was her hand in his that he felt first, next was a little niggling pain in his ankle and side but it was barely there. His hand squeezed hers, he heard her relieved sigh and all he had to do now was open his eyes but it was hard as his face twitched with the struggle.

"Ino." He slurred, frowning as it didn't come out as clearly as he wanted to but he heard her cry with relief as he finally managed to peek his eyes open.

"Sai." She whispered softly, a hand slowly stroked his cheek and he couldn't help but lean into the feeling as he tried to get his vision to clear by blinking sluggishly.

"Hello Miss Beautiful." Sai murmured with a small smile when he finally saw her leaning over him, her hair was tied up out of the way, she had no make-up on and she looked like she'd barely slept but she did look beautiful as her face lit up with a blinding smile.

"Hi." Ino replied quietly. "I missed you." Sai lifted his hand with some effort but he managed and stroked up her arm to her shoulder before his hand cupped the side of her neck, thumb stroking the line of her jaw.

"I missed you too, I'm sorry I scared you." He told her, he could still read the residual fear in her eyes that she was desperately trying to hide from him and just like she could read him, he could read her too.

"We'll talk about that later, I'm just so glad you're okay." She said as tears pooled in her eyes and he wiped them away gently when they fell.

"How is Inojin?" Sai asked softly, hoping the change of subject would help soothe his wife.

"He's fine, Sakura took him into the waiting room as they all wanted to give me a moment alone with you. You were in an induced coma last night as they wanted to give you a blood transfusion and rebuild your chakra." She explained with a worried look. "Do you want to see him?"

Sai nodded tiredly, she made a move to go and get their son but his grip on her arm stopped her. He smiled softly at his wife as she came closer, he slid his hand behind her neck and gently pulled her into a kiss.

She let out a content sigh against his lips, the kiss was chaste and over far too quickly but he was so exhausted despite having been asleep since he came home. When she pulled away, she gazed down at him lovingly as a tender smile tugged on her lips and he pressed their foreheads together.

"I love you." Sai murmured and her smiled widened.

"I love you too." Her voice was thick with emotion and after another quick press of lips, he let her go and get their son. Once he was alone, he looked around the room and noticed the chair beside his bed. A dishevelled blanket provided evidence that she had stayed with him the whole night, her voice talking to him throughout the night hadn't been a dream and he smiled softly at the thought.

His smile grew when he saw her walk in with their son, his little blue eyes staring at him curiously as she moved closer to him and a gummy smile appeared on his face.

"Look Inojin, it's your Tou-San." Ino cooed to their child and he began to babble as he looked down at his father.

"Hello Inojin." Sai murmured as he held his hand out to their baby and his little hand squeezed around his fingers…And immediately tried to eat them. "You can't just eat Tou-San's hand, I need it." He joked lightly and Ino laughed softly as she watched them.

"Sakura says they'll be in soon to visit, you'll be allowed to come home today but she said you will be on bedrest for the next few days." Ino informed him with a gentle voice and he nodded.

"I know you said we'll talk about it later but I want you to know that I…I won't go on anymore missions by myself. I didn't understand why you were upset before I left but when I was trying to get home I realised that I was wrong for not accepting Kakashi-Sama's offer." He explained to her with a small frown, she nodded gratefully as her lips turned down with unspoken words and he sighed softly as their son giggled around his wiggling fingers. "Anata, you asked me to be honest with you and it wouldn't matter how good or bad it would be. So please just say what's on your mind."

Ino bit her lip as she stared down at their child, her eyes were stormy and as much as Sai would have trouble picking up her emotions at times he knew she was having some kind of inner conflict.

"I…I don't want you to go on any solo missions again, so I'm glad you said you won't because it was something I was gonna bring up when we talked later…You have no idea how hard it was to see you like that and I…" She said as she tried to hold back her tears as she held their son tighter, seeing her upset because of him twisted something in his heart and he didn't like it.

"I'm sorry Ino." He replied simply. "I don't like upsetting you."

"I know." She murmured, her hand reached for his free one and he squeezed it gently. They sat in a comfortable silence, both parents watching their baby gurgle as Sai rubbed soothing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb but the calm was soon disturbed by their friends coming in.

"Hey Sai." Naruto said as he walked in, Hinata following with a relieved smile and Sakura walked over to the chart at the bottom of his bed to write notes. "Man, am I glad to see you awake dattebayo."

"Hello, thank you for helping me to the hospital Naruto."He replied with a warm smile.

"How are you feeling?" Sakura asked and Sai paused for a moment to think about it.

"I feel tired, a little sore but not much pain." She nodded as she scribbled something down in her notes.

"You should be able to go home in about an hour or so but it'll be strictly bedrest for the next few days. You're chakra is building back up but it's slow and thankfully the blood transfusion has gone through successfully, if you even step a toe out of bed except for going to the bathroom I will put you back in hospital are we clear?!" Sakura explained and Sai honestly wasn't sure if she meant that she would hurt him or not…He decided he shouldn't ask and he nodded quickly.

"I'm glad you're okay Sai-San." Hinata said in a quiet voice and he smiled at her.

"Thank you." He replied and Ino smiled down at him fondly.

"Room for two more?" Choji asked from the doorway as he and Shikamaru stood there hesitantly, Sakura motioned them in with a friendly smile and Naruto and Hinata moved a little to the side so they could walk towards the bed.

"Sai, it's good to see you." Shikamaru told him with a warm smile as Choji nodded his agreement.

"Thank you, it's good to see you as well." He replied with a smile. He felt happy he realised, it was a slow burn but he felt this kind of warm joy that his friends were there around him and his wife and son. They worried about him and were happy he was okay.

Sometimes he had these moments where he realised just what he had, like he had been going through life and only seeing glimpses of colours before he would double-take and realise that there had been a beautiful sunset around him the whole time.

Sakura busied herself with preparations for him to go home while everyone else talked, Shikamaru and Choji were sent back to the Yamanaka house to pick up some clothes for Sai as the nurses had cut his shirt off when he had first been admitted while Naruto and Hinata waited to walk them home.

Ino couldn't take her eyes off of him he'd noticed, her eyes would stray to whoever was talking or even their son but they would quickly look back at his face. She couldn't hide her relief and he was just glad that she wasn't sad anymore, he still felt the guilt in his chest but he knew he would make sure he would never do this to her again.

Ino stayed with him in the room when his clothes were brought to him, Sakura had made everyone leave and carried a gurgling Inojin out with her. He moved to sit on the side of his bed, legs dangling as his wife helped him into his shirt as he was still exhausted and stiff.

"You'll probably be made to sit in a wheelchair until we get to the entrance of the hospital but Naruto said he'll help you walk or he'll carry you if you prefer." His wife told him, giggling softly at the last part and he shook his head fondly.

"I think I'll be able to walk home with the extra help. Thank you." Sai murmured and she shook her head with a gentle smile.

"I'll let Sakura know we're ready, the sooner we're home the sooner I can cuddle up with you in bed." Ino said fondly and he couldn't help the feeling of excitement burning in his chest as he really wanted that too.

Sakura came in with a wheelchair, Ino was holding their baby again as she followed behind and picked up the diaper bag to drape it over her shoulder.

"Easy Sai." Sakura mumbled as she helped him off the bed and into the chair before she let Ino leave the room first and pushed his chair to follow behind.

"Sakura-Chan, I'm going to help Sai walk home and then I'll bring Sarada by later-ttebayo, Hanabi's looking after her and Boruto." Naruto told his teammate as he walked beside her, Hinata and Ino on the other side.

"Well I would prefer that you'd be in the wheelchair the whole way home but I guess I'll have to let it slide this one time." She said to Sai. "I mean it though, you're on bed rest for at least a week."

"Alright." He replied, not wanting to argue with her lest she get angry with him and he took a deep breath as wondered absently if the walk home would hurt much.

Once they got to the doors of the hospital Naruto stood in front of the wheelchair, Sai struggled to stand but his friend pulled his left arm over his shoulder and secured an arm around his waist.

"Don't walk too fast." Sakura said sternly before she turned to Ino. "I still have a few more rounds to do at the hospital but I'll be over later with some medication and stuff for Sai. I'll see you later Pig, bye guys." Sakura said before she turned and brought the chair back into the storage room.

"See you later forehead." Ino called back with a small chuckle while the others bid their goodbyes.

"Ready Sai?" Naruto asked carefully, he nodded and they began to slowly make their way to the Yamanaka household. He felt a little pain as he was still limping from the sprain in his ankle but he knew it was nothing compared to his walk home when he had first been injured, people waved at them as they walked past and offered relieved smiles.

Ino walked beside him so Inojin could look at him as he was beginning to whine and she rocked him slowly in her arms.

"Where did Shikamaru and Choji go?" Sai asked her curiously and she smiled softly as she looked at him.

"Oh, well Karui called him as she thinks she might be in labour but she could be having the false Braxton Hicks contractions so he went home to check on her, Shikamaru went to check on Temari and Shikadai but he said they might call over later." She explained with a fond smile and he nodded softly.

"Hopefully she has the baby soon, I know Choji is very excited." Sai replied and she laughed cheerfully.

"Excited is one way of putting it, what was Naruto like when you went into labour Hinata?" She said as she turned to her friend.

"Oh well, at first he asked me to repeat myself a few times when I told him I was in labour and then he started crying." Hinata answered shyly but her smile was kind.

"Well I was shocked and happy, I couldn't help myself-ttebayo." Naruto defended as he avoided everyone's eyes.

"It's okay after he finished crying he brought me to the hospital." She added softly as Naruto ducked his head and Ino chuckled quietly.

"That's adorable." Ino said as she adjusted Inojin in her arms as he had fallen asleep and let out a relieved sigh as they came to the gates of their house. "Hinata, could you please reach into the bag and get the keys; my hands are full." She asked as she held Inojin a little more securely.

"Of course Ino-Chan." Hinata replied kindly as she reached into the bag and took out the keys before she led the way to the house, Naruto helped Sai into the house and walked towards the bed as Ino quickly set their baby in his crib before rushing over to pull back the blankets so he could be eased down into bed.

"Thank you Naruto, Hinata for helping us." Sai said politely as he settled himself back comfortably, Ino eased him up a bit so she could put another pillow behind him so he could sit up a bit.

"You're welcome Sai-San." Hinata replied as Naruto nodded with a grin.

"You guys need anything just call us dattebayo." The future hokage told them and Ino shook her head fondly.

"Thanks guys, we will but I think it's time we got some sleep." She told them and Hinata nodded in understanding before she accepted her husband's hand.

"We'll call over tomorrow, we may even bring Boruto with us as well. He has missed his uncle." Hinata told them with a friendly smile.

"Please do." Ino replied fondly as she walked them to the door and bid them farewell before closing the door softly. She walked back into their bedroom and eased herself down on her side of the bed and he looked over at her warmly.

"Do you think Sakura was exaggerating when she said I would have to be in bed for a week or-" He began but she snorted softly beside him.

"Sakura does tend to go overboard with her bedrest orders but yes, you are confined to bed for a week so no outdoor adventures for a while but if you wanted to sit in the living room instead of bed at some point well…I won't tell if you won't." Ino murmured affectionately and he smiled happily at her.

"I won't tell anyone, I think she may actually kill me." Sai replied honestly but he knew she didn't mean it literally as she was holding back her giggles and he breathed out a huff of laughter when he realised.

"I know I've said it before but I'm glad you're home." She told him as she let out a tired sigh, her shoulders relaxing as if she'd been carrying a heavy weight this whole time and he carefully put his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"I promised." He said softly, fingers stroking the skin of her arm absently and she settled into his side as she laid her head down on his shoulder, she tucked her arms into her chest as she didn't want to disturb his wound and buried her face in his neck.

"Even if you are asked to, please don't go on solo missions again." He heard her whisper and he squeezed her closer before turning his head to kiss her forehead.

"I won't, I promise I won't." Sai murmured and she nodded into his neck. "I truly am sorry for scaring you, I walked all night to keep my promise and I won't do that to you again. I don't think I'll go on another mission for a few months, I want to be with you and Inojin for a while."

"Anata, it's over now, you're home, you're alive and that's all that matters." Ino mumbled, her lips brushing his neck as she spoke which caused him to shiver and she pressed a kiss to his neck.

"I love you Ino." He said and she pulled back a little to look up at him with a soft gaze and he smiled his real smile at her before he leaned in to kiss her gently.

"I love you too Sai." Ino murmured into his mouth when they had pulled back but he still felt her lips brush his as she spoke before she settled back into his side comfortably.

Sai waited until her breathing evened out, glad that she was finally getting some sleep and he looked over to the crib as he could see Inojin dozing peacefully. Something settled in his heart, he had learned over the years during their relationship about the feeling of _home_ and he had never felt it as strongly as he did now.

He had 'killed' his emotions years ago when his Nii-San told him to but truthfully he knew that he could be a very emotional person, he just found it hard to express and had long forgotten the meanings behind those feelings. He strived to change that about himself though and he felt so happy that he did and he had a family.

His wife understood him more than anyone else, he was always honest with her even if she would get mad and she had a patience for him that was unrivalled. The day they married he had this feeling in his chest like he wanted to be a part of something bigger but had a self-conscious doubt that he would not make her happy like she did for him.

All his doubts disappeared when he saw her though, her cheeks were a soft rosy pink, her hair clipped back on one side with a beautiful Gardenia attached to the clip and she smiled tearfully at him when he looked up at her in surprise.

Shikamaru and Choji stood at either side of her to give her away in Inoichi's place whilst her mother held a picture of her husband on her lap as she wiped her own tears away with a tissue. They held hands throughout the ceremony, her eyes glittered with excitement and unshed tears and he couldn't stop himself from smiling…not one of his typical smiles but a real genuine one that he normally only expressed to her.

When they kissed, Ino had placed a gentle hand on his cheek and whispered ' _I love you, Yamanaka Sai_ " into his lips. He had flushed, he remembered fondly, embarrassed for some reason even though they were married but he was slightly overwhelmed at the time as she smiled fondly at his reaction.

He looked down at her sleeping form, feeling his exhaustion now and he drifted off peacefully to thoughts of his family.

A/N: WHEW! This ship kills me, Sorry if the ending was kinda rushed but I needed this out there! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

P.S. I really wanted to do a scene where Sai has Inojin on his chest but hey if I add more I shall!


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